Seeking success
CSM men’s lax looking for respect; women’s team playing club schedule By TED BLACK
After opening the season with a setback at Delaware Tech Community College, the College of Southern Maryland men’s lacrosse team could be excused for downplaying its ex- pectations this spring. But the Hawks hardly seemed phased at last week’s media day ses- sion, coming before Saturday’s 11-6 win over Brookdale Com- munity College (N.J.).
CSM first-year head coach Steven Foote and a trio of his players, sophomore Brandon King (a Chopticon High School graduate from Mechanicsville) and freshmen Greg Gaetano (a Leonardtown High School graduate from Leonardtown) and Rondrell Marshall (a Lack- ey High School graduate from Indian Head) began focusing on the task at hand.
“We have a lot of young kids on the team this season,” said Foote, noting that King is one of only three returning players along with Richard D’Alessandro (a North Point High School graduate from Indian Head) and Jordan Howells (a Lackey High School graduate from Indian Head). “All but three of the players are freshmen. That opening game at Delaware Tech did not go the way we would have liked, but we still have high goals for the team this season.”
CSM (1-1 overall after Satur- day’s win) led Delaware Tech 2-1 after the opening quarter in its Feb. 25 opener, but the hosts forged a 10-4 halftime lead and then took a commanding 18-8 advantage into the fourth quar- ter. Howells led the Hawks with three goals, while Greg Havens (a Chopticon High School graduate from Mechan- icsville) and Kenny Barnes (a Chopticon High School graduate from Mechanicsville) each scored twice.
“Our main goal is to go out and score as many goals as we can and win as many games we we can,” said King, who scored one goal in the Delaware Tech setback, as did freshmen Gaetano, Andrew Nagel (a Westlake High School graduate from Waldorf), Colton Risor (a Leonardtown High School graduate from Leonardtown) and Quint Burroughs (a DeMatha High School graduate from Swan Point). “I play attack, so my goal is to score as many goals as I can. It’s a learning curve, especially for the freshmen. They have to be brought up to speed on how much faster the college game is than in high school.”
In its home opener Saturday versus Brookdale, CSM outscored the visitors 6-1 in the third quarter to pull away for the win.
Riser finished with three goals and two assists, while Kevin Holmes (a Huntingtown High School graduate from Huntingtown) added two goals and three assists. King had three goals, Burroughs contributed two goals and an as- sist and Howells finished with three assists.
Gaetano and Marshall have noticed the difference in speed and skill level from the high school level to the col- lege game. Both were quick to put the opening setback behind them and look toward future games.
“As an attacker, I would like to be able to score more goals,” Gaetano said. “We have a lot of freshmen on the team and most of them played in the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference. It probably took a week to get adjusted to playing with a lot of guys that I was used to playing against in high school. But we’re all here on the same team with the same goals.”
“As a defender, I want to protect my goalie and make sure the other teams get few- er scoring chances,” Marshall said. “The game is definitely a lot faster in college than what I was used to in high school. But it makes you work harder. You have to be faster and stronger. For me, the ideal game is not allowing anyone on the other team to get any quality shots on my goalie.”
Club status for CSM women’s lax
While the CSM men’s lacrosse team has already embarked on its varsity season, the Hawks women opted to play at the club level this spring due to a smaller, less experienced roster.
First-year head coach Doug Otten has only one sophomore on the roster with prior playing experience, Katlyn Permenter (a Northern High School graduate from Owings) and a bevy of freshmen, including daughter Rylee Otten, a La Plata High School graduate from La Plata.
“I think with so many younger players, especially so many that are new to the sport, it was best that we become a club team this spring,” Otten said. “We have some girls that had never played the sport prior to this season and Katlyn was our only returning player.”
Otten noted that freshman Kayla Bobo (a Huntingtown High School from Chesapeake Beach) was instrumental in recruiting players onto the current squad, including Amy Chaffee (a Huntingtown High School graduate from Prince Frederick), Kayla Getgen (a La Plata High School graduate from Charlotte Hall), Akilah Stroman, a St. Mary’s Ryken High School graduate from White Plains who played two seasons of basketball at CSM, and goalkeeper Carrie Lovejoy, 40, a Newburg resident and the team’s oldest freshman player.
“When it was obvious that we were going to be short on play- ers, I started posting announcements on social media trying to get girls here to come and play for the team,” Bobo said. “I’m glad that we have a team and we can play a club schedule. A lot of the girls are new to lacrosse, but they come to practice ready to learn about the game.”